Posted: 23 May 2009 1657 hrs
Australian PM Kevin Rudd
SYDNEY: Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said it was inconvenient but necessary to ramp up the country's pandemic threat response as the number of confirmed H1N1 flu cases on Saturday reached 14.
Canberra lifted its alert level to a containment phase on Friday, after recording the country's first case of human-to-human transmission of the A(H1N1) virus in 10-year-old girl who contracted the disease from a classmate.
The girl's classmate had fallen ill upon returning from a family holiday to the United States.
The new phase allows for the closure of schools and other public places and cancellation of major events, with three schools already shut following the confirmation of cases among students.
Further closures are likely, with two boys, aged eight and 15, being diagnosed with the virus in Melbourne, taking the total number of cases to 14.
Authorities said neither boy had travelled recently or come into contact with any known cases.
Rudd acknowledged the closure of schools would inconvenience families, but said it was important to take decisive action.
"Every effort by our public health authorities has been taken to avoid deaths at home," Rudd told reporters.
"We will take whatever actions are necessary to underpin the public health of the nation."
With the exception of a 51-year-old Mexican tourist, all Australia's H1N1 flu cases are younger than 28, and more than half are school-aged children.
More than 11,100 cases and 86 deaths have been recorded since the outbreak of A(H1N1) influenza emerged in Mexico and the United States a month ago, and the world remains at flu alert level five, signalling an "imminent pandemic".
- AFP/yt
From channelNewsAisa.com; see the source article here.
Australian PM Kevin RuddSYDNEY: Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said it was inconvenient but necessary to ramp up the country's pandemic threat response as the number of confirmed H1N1 flu cases on Saturday reached 14.
Canberra lifted its alert level to a containment phase on Friday, after recording the country's first case of human-to-human transmission of the A(H1N1) virus in 10-year-old girl who contracted the disease from a classmate.
The girl's classmate had fallen ill upon returning from a family holiday to the United States.
The new phase allows for the closure of schools and other public places and cancellation of major events, with three schools already shut following the confirmation of cases among students.
Further closures are likely, with two boys, aged eight and 15, being diagnosed with the virus in Melbourne, taking the total number of cases to 14.
Authorities said neither boy had travelled recently or come into contact with any known cases.
Rudd acknowledged the closure of schools would inconvenience families, but said it was important to take decisive action.
"Every effort by our public health authorities has been taken to avoid deaths at home," Rudd told reporters.
"We will take whatever actions are necessary to underpin the public health of the nation."
With the exception of a 51-year-old Mexican tourist, all Australia's H1N1 flu cases are younger than 28, and more than half are school-aged children.
More than 11,100 cases and 86 deaths have been recorded since the outbreak of A(H1N1) influenza emerged in Mexico and the United States a month ago, and the world remains at flu alert level five, signalling an "imminent pandemic".
- AFP/yt
From channelNewsAisa.com; see the source article here.
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